Martin Luther King Jr. Day events around Asheville area 2024

Find events Jan. 13-16 to celebrate and honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and celebrate equality, justice and the dream of a better world.

Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast: 8 a.m. Jan. 13, Crowne Plaza Resort, 1 Resort Drive, Asheville. Speaker is James E. Ferguson II. Hosted by The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County. $15-$350. Get tickets at https://mlkasheville.org/product/mlk-breakfast/. Online ticket sales close Jan. 3.

Candlelight service: 5:30 p.m. Jan. 14, Trinity Episcopal Church, 60 Church St., Asheville. A service to honor area citizens and organizations that have dedicated themselves to the cause of social justice. Visit https://mlkasheville.org/activities/candlelight-service/.

14th annual Kenilworth Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: 5 p.m. Jan. 15, Kenilworth Presbyterian Church, 123 Kenilworth Road. Community potluck 5 p.m. at Kenilworth Center, 4 Chiles Ave. (directly behind church) followed by program at 6:30 p.m. in church sanctuary. The topic is “A Capital for Black Capitalism: Soul City, NC and its Unique Connection to Asheville.” Keynote speaker is Floyd B. McKissick Jr. Esq., son of the late civil rights leader and Asheville native Floyd B. McKissick. The McKissicks and associates were the developers of a 3,700-acre community called Soul City. DJ Profe$$ah G will be spinning tunes. For more information contact Katie Adams at 828-273-3747 or mountainstomoveavl@gmail.com.

Peace March and Rally: 11:30 a.m. service Jan. 15 at St. James AME Church, 44 Hildebrand St., Asheville, march to Pack Square at 12:30 p.m., rally at 1 p.m. Bring nonperishable food items to St. James AME Church to be distributed between MANNA FoodBank and East End Valley Street Neighborhood Food Pantry. Visit https://mlkasheville.org/events/peace-march-and-rally-43/.

23rd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast: 8 a.m. Jan. 15, Blue Ridge Community College’s Education and Development Center, Flat Rock. Breakfast at 8 a.m., program at 9 a.m. Theme is “Life’s most persistent and urgent question: What are you doing for others?” Featured speaker will be James E. Ford, Executive Director of CREED (The Center for Racial Equity in Education), based in Charlotte. $15, $5 age 12 and younger. Cash or check accepted. Tickets also available at the door. Visit https://www.cfhcforever.org/impact-insights/funds-in-focus/mlk-unity.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at Mars Hill University: Jan. 15. Breakfast 8-9:30 a.m. in Pittman Dining Hall. $8.50, students admitted on their meal plan. Film “At the River I Stand” at 10:30 a.m. in Belk Auditorium in Wren Student Union. Depart from trailhead at Bailey Mountain Preserve, 889 Forest St., for group hike from 1-4 p.m. on Bailey Mountain hiking trails and reading of famous 1968 speech “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.”

Day of service and community march: Transylvania NAACP commemorates life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Jan. 16 with a Day of Service at Sharing House, 164 Duckworth Ave., Brevard. Activities will include inside cleaning, sorting and folding clothing, landscaping, etc. To volunteer, email event coordinator at bernardgroseclose@gmail.com. There will be a community march at 5:30 p.m. that starts at the Mary C. Jenkins Center and ends at the Porter Center on the Brevard College campus, where a program will be held at 7 p.m.

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This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Martin Luther King Jr. Day events around Asheville area 2024